I’m partaking in this year’s Diabetes Blog Week. Each post this week will be based on a pre-determined prompt constructed by Karen over at Bittersweet Diabetes. You can participate by visiting her website.

The Cost of a Chronic Illness – Tuesday 5/16

Insulin and other diabetes medications and supplies can be costly.  Here in the US, insurance status and age (as in Medicare eligibility) can impact both the cost and coverage.  So today, let’s discuss how cost impacts our diabetes care.  Do you have advice to share?  For those outside the US, is cost a concern?  Are there other factors such as accessibility or education that cause barriers to your diabetes care?  (This topic was inspired by suggestions from Rick and Jen.)

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Alternate title: how to piss off the entire diabetic online community on a Tuesday morning. (#thanksjen)

It’s no secret that having diabetes is expensive. It’s also no secret that no one in public office seems to understand that chronic conditions are usually the result of drawing a genetic short straw. I mean, check here, here, here, and here for examples from our elected (and appointed) officials.

For me, it’s the difference between being a stay at home mom, freelancing or working part time, or being a full-time working mom. I have a job with rare, excellent coverage and I have little to no complaints about my medical benefits. I have both individual and dependent premiums covered 100%. (I pay for it by not getting annual raises and a relatively low wage for my job description – but, win some, lose some.) I often go through scenarios where I opt to pull Bean out of daycare because I don’t think it’s worth my paycheck – then I realize that I’m probably also saving about $1200/month by getting insurance from my employer. With the legislature now rolling toward a repeal of the ACA that would effectively double the cost of any individual insurance plan for us, I will be staying at my job until I’m 70. In lieu of paying for individual medical insurance, I’d like to retire comfortably, save for an emergency and Bean’s college fund, pay off our mortgage, stay out of credit card debt, and a litany of other things other than a new iPhone every year.

 

My voice is one that Congress needs to hear the most. My experience as someone who is young and sick differs greatly from someone approaching the Medicare age. I am a middle-aged adult in the middle class with an invisible illness that requires high-cost, around the clock maintenance. My income disqualifies me from most drug rebates and assistance programs. However, I don’t just have $10,000 per year lying around. Obviously, we are smart enough to cut non-essentials to keep the insulin flowing, but at what point do you deem retirement and fiscal responsibility a non-essential?

But, if you listen to news coverage or our public officials, our stories are seemingly left out of the conversation. I’ve been trying to think of ways the health care conversation would be different if the “young and sick” had seats at the table. Several things would need to be accepted beforehand:

1. That not all chronic conditions are the result of lifestyle choices.
2. That medical costs not only are a drain on those on fixed incomes later in life, but also hinder the choices young people make about their futures.
3. That those younger will effectively pick jobs or careers based on benefit packages offered by an employer.
4. That chronic conditions don’t benefit from catastrophic coverage alone.  
5. That a majority of Americans are one diagnosis away from medical bankruptcy.

It’s hard to get anywhere because the current conversation revolves around Americans obtaining affordable health insurance and confusing it with getting affordable health care. Until we can accurately address the rising costs of medical care with our legislature, we will continue to fight the wrong battle. Have you considered looking up the Diabetes PAC?